Vanessa Bryant is suing as a widow, mother as well as the Successor of the Bryant estate
VB is suing Island Express Helicopters Inc
as well as the estate of Pilot Ara Zobayan (listed as Doe 1)
Vanessa Bryant is represented by
Munger, Tolles, & Olson which have offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington D.C.
They have represented Merrill Lynch, James Arthur Ray (The Secret), Aftermath Records, and ABC
Vanessa alleges that KB and Gigi
could have survived the crash and seeks compensation for the amount of time they lay injured
The lawsuit alleges that Island Express knew that the helicopter was not licensed to operate under IFR rules.
That Island Express failed to train its pilots or supervise them
Did not equip its helicopters with terrain warning systems
That Island Express was aware that Ara Zobayan was a reckless pilot, citing a 2015 incident where Zobayan was told not to land at Los Angeles International Airport in 3 mile visibility but he did so anyway
Further the lawsuit blames Island Express for not grounding its aircraft even though the Los Angeles Police Department, and other helicopter companies did so
Vanessa’s lawsuit further claims Island Express
knowingly permitted Ara Zobayan to fly into unsafe conditions
The lawsuit accuses pilot Ara Zobayan
of not checking pre flight weather conditions
The lawsuit states Ara Zobayan failed to land the helicopter once he knew conditions were too poor to fly in
Vanessa Bryant is seeking punitive damages stating the actions of Island Express and Ara Zobayan were malicious
Vanessa Bryant is also seeking reimbursement of funeral costs as well as damages for grief etc
Vanessa Bryant seeks an unknown amount for loss of
financial support and future earnings from
both KB and Gigi Bryant
The lawsuit states that during the crash N72EX was in a 184 mph descent for 15 seconds
